Easton SyNergy EQ50

[JR Boucicaut 3802]

At the MSH Summer Jam, Easton and MSH held a drawing for a customized EQ50 stick. hyprlte won it and he has just received the stick.

[hyprlte 0]

So i received the EQ50 stick yesterday and was able to use it for the first time last night. I will be on the ice about 5 times this week (mostly games) with a

few practices. A bit about me:

Right wing

6"2 225 lbs

Parise curve (replaced the drury)

100 Flex

When I first saw the stick, It looked very similar to the ST in my opinion. When speaking to the Easton rep, I told him how much i loved the old Synergy Elite stick and wished that they could bring that technology back. He told me that this stick should do the trick for me so i took it out. After using it for about 20 min i noticed that the flex of the stick was almost gone, i was using a 100 and it felt like an 85. The stick didn't really take passes too well - the puck was bouncing off the stick in every direction. After i told the rep i was unimpressed with the EQ50 i was told that i won the raffle and was getting my own custom stick. I was guaranteed a world of difference with my custom choice.

Initial thoughts:

Balance

Here is where the new technology comes in. On the heel there are a few weights built into the blade. This weight is countered with 4 weights built into the

end cap (I will post pics later). This made for a well balanced stick - a touch heavier than the s19. You can't even tell that there are weights it.

Blade

It feels just like the se16 in my opinion - no big change in the feeling.

Shaft

Feels much better than the demo that i used in Summerjam. Seemed to be pretty strong as i took a few hefty slashes to it and still felt like new. I found that this is a true 100 flex shaft with a ton of kick to it. My main worry will be how long the shaft will keep its kick. Only time will tell.

Shooting / Passing

I think Easton improved a lot on this aspect. Every time the puck left my stick it felt like there was some extra "zing" to it. I mostly shoot in games, but since this was shinny i was passing it off more. Every snap shot, slap shot, and even backhand i took went where i wanted it to go. I have yet to really test the shooting aspect in a hard practice or game yet.

Conclusion

After spending 50 min on the ice with it, i felt impressed. The true test will be tonight, and thursday. Im really hard on my sticks, so i will be interested to see how this stick holds up in the games. I will be sure to post thoughts following tonights game, and thursdays practice and game as well.

[hyprlte 0]

Here are my thoughts following my game last night. I was playing on Olympic ice which meant tons of skating, and passing. Really got a feel for how the stick performs under game conditions. I was able to use the stick throughout the entire game, didn't switch back to my Dolomites after the first period, which is a big thing for me. This was one of the more "chippier" games of the year. Tons of slashing, hooking, and hitting. The EQ50 held up extremely well. My initial worry of this stick snapping after 1 shot (real shot) has now been put to rest. In this skate the skill level is much faster so I was able to get a much better feel for the stick and how it performs

Balance - same as before, i still like the fact that there is a bit of weight on it. That way when you slash someone they feel it

Shaft - I've been reading that some of the members here think that the s19 has more of a "lively" feel. Maybe it was the demos that we got to use at the summerjam skate, but this shaft feels great. I was able to get 4 or 5 real shots on net, half of them were one timers and the accuracy was spot on; great flex and kick to it. As stated before it was victim to some pretty harsh slashes and still feels like new.

Blade - As posted in my first review, this is one of my favorite features. Maybe it's the weights on this stick, but the passes were great to take with this stick - none were bouncing off the blade. Every pass was hard, crisp and accurate. Note - I was in front of the net and took a hefty point shot on the back side of the blade. It wasn't hit square on as it was tipped, but well have to see if the blade was damaged at all from the shot.

Graphics - I like the look of this stick, its very clean with a few designs that you really have to look hard to see. Some of my friends said it looks like a CCM U+ cl, but with orange graphics. I like how Easton always keeps things simple while making discreet upgrades.

Thats it for now. A funny side note - there were pros coming up to me asking about the stick Last night. Some said they heard about this stick and haven't seen it yet, and others just plain never heard of it. That being said, i'd bet Easton's pro reps will receive a few phone calls today :)

[hyprlte 0]

Few notables following yesterdays game

My teammates said my passes were coming significantly harder and faster... The blade is definitely an improvement from the SE16 for me. Had 1 assist and 1 goal (a deflection) to secure the semi-finals for our summer team.

The weight system in this stick has been amazing since day 1. When i tried this stick out, I wasn't sure what to expect with it. I found that the weights in the blade help with accepting passes (puck isn't bouncing off the blade) and the feel has improved greatly. When stick handling with the EQ you can certainly feel the puck on the blade - which is important to me.

A small downside - It looks like the graphics around the hosel of the stick are starting to chip off just like the colour did off of the Easton Synergy SL. Its not a big deal as long as the stick still works but for personal preference i like when the graphics stay in tact. Well see how the stick looks when i'm done playoffs and heading off to training camp.

[hyprlte 0]

Quick update

After a week of usage in games I went out to skate with a few pros and Major Junior guys. We ran drills for about 45 min then had a 15 min scrimmage. After the skate we were allowed to hang around and shoot so I figured I would try this stick with different set ups in the butt end.

First set up

I completely removed the butt end and shot around for a bit. For me, it felt like using a stick with a 5 lbs weight tied to the bottom. It felt awkward shooting the puck.... The majority of shots stayed either on the ice or had minimal height to them. It kind of felt like i was using a stick that was too long for me. Did not like the feel one bit - way to heavy in the blade. I guess if you are going to use this stick, you should plan on keeping the butt end in.

Second set up

I took 2 of the 4 weights out. It felt odd at first, but once I took about 25 shots or so it was not too bad. That being said it is in no way better than my normal set up, but it was interesting to see how keeping some of the weight in affected my shot/pass. With accuracy my passes and shots were still on the money, but they didn't have that "zing" to them which when using the regular set up gave me. I didn't spent too much time with this set up but I would still like to try having 1 weight in and 3 weights in the butt end.

Till next time...

[Chadd 916]

Just to clarify, you normally use it with all of the weights in?

[hyprlte 0]

Sorry... Yes, I normally use the end plug with all the weights in.

[hyprlte 0]

Update

So After the first 2 weeks of using the stick - I felt that the shaft went soft. I messaged JR about this problem and he was kind enough to speak to Easton on my behalf. The end result was that Easton wanted me to return the stick to diagnose the problem. They also replaced the stick for me.

I will now continue on with the review. This new stick definitely feels much stiffer than the first one - I will be using it within the next two days and should have a report up shortly.

Once again - a huge thanks to J.R for making this possible for me.

[hyprlte 0]

So after round 1 with my new EQ:

Definitely stiffer - Really noticed it on my shots. It felt like the kick was much stronger and more solid compared to the previous model. I took about 100 shots lastnight after playing in harsh conditions (slashes, hitting). One notible is that somebody stepped on my stick. I would say right around where the EQ50 logo is located on the shaft. It did not break, but i will certainly be watching to see how that part of the shaft holds up after time.

As for the set up. I decided to keep all four weights in again. After trying out the stick with 1,2,3 and all weights in the stick this definitely feels the best and most balanced.

The blade feels improved as well. When I spoke to J.R I told him about how the blade went soft and became really pingy when accepting passes. It seems that Easton has taken care of that problem. Im taking passes just like I was when I received the original stick. Great feel.

Since I also received a Base hockey stick, I will be rotating with that and this EQ50. I will be doing a comparison for my own info, but limiting the info to just the EQ50 in this thread.

more to come

[hyprlte 0]

Update:

Used the stick last night, what a difference. I am finding that the shots are flying off this blade.. really quickly. The stick has a great feel from beginning to end. I've noticed that the blade on this stick is much less pingy than the previous one, the feel in the shaft is great - loads extremely well, and the kick is nice and strong.

I did notice a rattle after the first period. When i shook the stick, i heard something rattling inside. Good news was that the stick wasn't broken. Perhaps it was a piece of the plastic on the plug that fell off? Not quite sure but I will definitely keep that in mind as my season goes on.

Structurally stick held up very well. I took about 5 good slashes (even one where the skate hit the shaft) and everything seems as good as new still. Im extremely impressed with how this stick is holding up so far.

More to follow after my skate tomorrow night....

[hyprlte 0]

Update

Ive been using the stick everyday for the past 5 days, and its still holding up extremely well.

The shaft - still has a good strong kick to it. One problem I have with the stick is that the grip is starting to peel off. I know this is due from wear and tear - mostly slashes. I just don't want to lose all the grip on the shaft. Last Thursday I had a guy chop the stick right out of my hand. I thought he broke it in half, but the EQ didn't look damaged one but. It has not affected the stick performance wise. Still a good feel when loading up a shot.

The blade - This is the really impressive part in my opinion. Normally when I have a stick, the blade almost immediately starts to chip on the toe and along the bottom of the blade - reason being that I am extremely hard on my sticks in the corners, in front of the net, ext. This blade still looks new to me. No chips whatsoever. Very impressed.

This stick continues to be my 1st choice when i play now, with the Dolomite as my spare.

[hyprlte 0]

Another Update:

In the past two weeks the EQ has still remained my stick of choice. Structurally, the stick is still in great shape - going strong. The shaft still has a ton of kick to it and the blade is still stiff.

One that has remained consistent with the stick is that the grip/graphics are starting to chip away. Nothing huge but I still prefer to use a stick with grip on the entire shaft, not just parts.

I have a tournament this weekend, which has me play 4 games in 2 days - Ill be sure to write a few more reviews before I conclude